Cable lashing machine



1954 1.. H. STANFORD CABLE LASi-IING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 11, 1951 INVENTOR.

LELAND H STANFORD Feb. 9, 1954 1.. H. STANFORD CABLE LASHING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 11, 1951 0 v 01 2 mm 2 mm mm N a S No mm u @N R vw m R 9 Q. 3 3 2 N E mm mm mm mm No 8 i S D R Rm mm NT. ES V H N I D W E L Patented Feb. 9, 1954 UNITED STATES TENT OFFICE" (Granted under Title 35, U. s. Code (1952),

sec. 266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon,

The present invention relates to the installation of aerial cables, and to means whereby the cables may be secured to a messenger or supporting strand.

Specifically, the invention relates to cable lashing machines, by which a lashing is spirally wound about a messenger strand and a cable or cables, or about a number of cables or wires so that the messenger strand or one of the wires or cables supports the lashed assembly.

The objects of my invention are:

First, to provide a cable lashing machine hav ing a positive drive so that the machine does not rely upon traction on the messenger strand or upon manual effort from an operator on the ground beneath it to accomplish winding of the lashing, but the lashing action is positive and results from the forward progress of the machine;

Second, to provide a relatively simple machine which is light in weight, requiring relatively little maintenance care and inexpensive to manufacture;

Third, to provide a lashing machine which will employ any of a wide variety of flexible lashings and/or driving lines;

Fourth, to provide such a lashing machine which will lash not only a multi-conductor cable, but also a plurality of individual conductors;

Fifth, to provide a lashing machine which will operate over any kind of messenger wire such as a single bare wire or a larger stranded wire as used commercially for that purpose;

Sixth, to provide a lashing machine that will lash through long spans without other attention from the ground than the tractive power to draw the machine along the messenger strand;

Seventh, to provide a lashing machine which will unlash cable which has been secured to a messenger strand, and thus clear the strand for supporting a replacing cable.

Other objects and features of the invention are obtained by a mechanism, one embodiment of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a right side elevational view of the machine arranged for cable lashing, with part of sheave and drive Wire broken away for purposes of clarity;

Fig. 2 is a left side elevational view of the machine with the lashing wire cup and the lock-v ing strap removed as for cable unlashing with part of sheave and drive wire broken away for purposes of clarity;

Fig. 3 is a rear elevational view of the machine, taken along the line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a front elevational view of the machine, taken along the line 44 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section taken along the line 5-5 of Fig. 1, showing the relationship, of the fixed and rotary sleeves and the slotted con: struction thereof, and

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section taken along the line 6-$ oi Fig. 1, showing the relation of the partsinvolved in the braking action on the drum, during the lashing operation.

In the various figures of the drawings, like numbers refer to similar parts.

For purposes of clarity and to more readily recognize the various components of the subject device, it will be assumed that the front of the device, as shown in Fig. l, is that part where the cable is brought up from the ground, and that the right side of the device is that portion containing the wheel over which the cable rides as seen in Fig. 1.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings where the device is shown as arranged for cable lashing and moves in the direction as'indicated by the arrow, there is shown a plate 1 which is provided at its rear edge with a tongue 8 to which is secured a fixed sleeve 9. The sleeve 9 is provided with a longitudinal slot in and has a similarly slotted retaining flange II at its forward end and a similarly slotted retaining collar [2 at its rear end. Along its upper edge, the plate 1 is provided with a forward rider wheel support 13 and a rear rider wheel support M, which support axles l5 and I6, respectively. Rotatable upon axles l5 and iii are rider wheels H and [8, respectively, so arranged that the said rider wheels revolve upon a messenger strand H), which is secured at each of its ends to separate poles (one pole 50 being shown) between which a cable 49 is to be secured. The sleeve 9 is positioned so that it encircles, but does not touch, the said messenger strand [9. i

As seen in Figs. 1 and 2, the lower edge of plate 'I has a rear extension to form an arm 20 to which wire guides 2| and 22 are attached. At the lower forward end of the plate "I is another arm 23 which is provided with a hole 24 for attachment of a towing line 25.

Coaxial with and encircling the fixed sleeve 9 is a lashing sleeve 26 which is provided with a longitudinal slot 21 and opening 38 and holes 42. The opening 38 is a small circular opening,

mately midway between the flange 28 and collar 29. Arm 33 is provided with a grommet 33 ex-; tending through an aperture in said arm, 'ten sioning studs 47 and an eyelet 48, the functions of which will be hereinafter set forth.

A lashing wire drum 3| provided with a longi' tudinal slot 32 encirclesand is coaxial with the I lashing sleeve 26 and is further provided withv holes 4| midway in its length, equidistant from i the slot 32, and 180 apart (see Fig. 5). The lashing wire drum 3| is provided with a forward flange 33 and a rear flange 36, flange 33 having on its forward face a curved sheave plate 33' which is concentric with said flange 33 and with it forms a driving sheave or pulley for rotating the drum 3|, as will be more fully described below.

Removably mounted between the forward flange 33 and rear flange 36 is a lashing wire cup (see Figs. 1 and '5), having a stud?! in its base, which rests across slot 32 of drum 3| and upon the sleeve 26 so that the stud 37 extends into the opening 33 of sleeve 26. A U shaped locking strap 39, provided at each end with an inwardly extending stud :33, passes over the top of the cup 35 and down both sides of said cup so as to embrace opposite sides of the core of the drum 3|. Locking strap, 39 is held secure by the studs 40 which penetrate the openings 4| in the drum 3|, and said studs also penetrate openings 32 of sleeve 26, thus performing the dual function of holding the cup in place on the drum 3| and also of locking the sleeve 26 and the drum 3| together so that they will ro tate as a unit during the lashing operation. An opening in the strap 33, coaxial with the cup 35, is, fitted with an eyelet 43 which provides an exit guide for lashing wire 44 as it pays "out from its coiled position within the cup 35.

From the eyelet 43, the lashing wire 44 passes through the grommet '46 in the end of the lash- 5 ing arm 30 and on opposite sides of the successive tensioning studs 41 to provide necessary tension and thence through eyelet 4'8 and around the messenger strand l9 and the cable '49 that is to be lashed, to the point on pole where the end of the dashing wire 44 is attached.

The cable 49 is brought up from the ground over a roller 5| which is free to turn on an axle 52, which is supported by the plate 7. The upper concave surface portion of roller 5| is approxi mately a projection of the lower inner surface of the sleeve 9, so that the cable 49 is fed from roller 5| to the front aperture of the sleeve 3. The cable is then fed through the sleeve 9 to a position where the lashing wire '44, under tension, draws the cable 39 against the messenger strand H], where it is lashed in place. o

A guard 53, to retain the cables and loose wires in place as they pass over theroller 5| into sleeve 9, is pivotably mounted on axle I6 and extends downwardly and forwardly alongside the roller 5| and upwardly to ,a point where it is supported by a clip 54 which is 'an extension of the forward edge of rider wheel support l3. An arm 55 extends downwardly from the guard 53 4 to the axle 52 for support. The guard 53 can be swung upwardly about axle l6, thus permitting the placing of the rider wheels I! and I3 over the messenger strand l9 and the positioning of the cable 49 over the roller 5|, after which the guard 53 is lowered to the position shown in Figs. 1 and 4.

When the machine is to be placed in operating position, as is shown in Fig. l, the lashing sleeve 26 and the drum 3| are rotated until the slots 21 and 32 register with slot l3 of the fixed sleeve 9 to enable the machine, with guard 53 "raised, to be placed initially over the strand I9 and cable 43, so that the strand I9 and the cable '69 pass through the fixed sleeve 9. Thereafter the sleeve 29 and the drum 3| are rotated to the positions shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 5 to facilitate the placement 'of the lashing wire cup 35 and threading of the lashing wire 43.

For preventing the machine from moving backward on the strand l9 when tension is released on the towing line 25, a braking wedge 56 (see Figs. 1 and 2) is provided. The braking wedge 56 will jam between the face of the rider wheel I8 and rider wheelsupport l3 under the pressure of a coil spring 5'! which surrounds a rod 58 located between the braking wedge 56 and a stud 53. The rod 58 has the braking wedge 56 secured to one end, a head 60 to the other, and passes slidably through a hole in the stud 53 which is rotatably mounted on the plate I. When it is desired to arrange for the machine to move rearwardly on the messenger strand l3, as when performing its unlashing operation the wedge 56 is moved forward by compressing the spring 5'! and the nose of the wedge is placed in a recess 62 of the ear 63 which is formed integral with the forward edge of the rider wheel support Hi, as shown (see Figs. 2 and 4).

To control the rotational movement of the drum 3|, that is, to permit the drum to rotate only counterclockwise or clockwise, the following restraining device is utilized. A braking cam 64 (Figs. 1, 2 and 6) is mounted rotatably onja pin 65 which is secured to a'lip 66 formed on the rear edge of plate I, as shown. When it is desired to perform lashing wherein only counterclockwise rotation (when viewed from the front of the machine, i. e., from the right in Fig.1) of the drumjis desired, a spring 73 extends from a stud 12 of the cam 64 to an eye (I of the plate I as to permit the drum 3| to rotate counterclockwise, but to prevent clockwise rotation through friction due to wedge action against flange 33 as is shown in Fig. 6. The braking action may be removed entirely when a spring 6'! which is secured to an eye 69, on the left sideof the plate 1, is hooked on to the stud 38 of cam 6 thus the spring 61 jbala'nces spring 10, and the cam 33 is held free from the face of theflange 33.

Mounted on the left side of plate 7 is a drive wire cup 13 'within which is a coil of drive wire 14, which is retained in place by astrapTE hinged at one end toth'e'plat'e '1. The drive wire 34 is brought out through anopening 7"! in the strap '15 and thence through 'a guide eye "It, se} cured to the plate Land past opposite sides of successive studs 79, servingas snubbers, to pro vide tension upon drive wire '14 and thence through the left drive wire guide 22 andthenc'e clockwise or counterclockwise around {the s eave formed between the flange 33 and the curved s a e p a e. 34 depending. 'pbn' Wh ther t. desired to lash the cable 19 clockwise or counterclockwise. Having passed over the sheave plate 34, the drive wire is passed through the right drive wire guide 2| and thence extended to the pole 59, where it is made fast at a point lower than the level of the guide 21, so that the rotation of the lashing arm will not cause it to strike the drive wire 14 between the pole 5B and the machine.

The operation of the machine above described can be briefly described as follows. The lash ing operation is performed by pulling the machine forward along the strand I9 by means of the towing line 25. This may be done manually or by some other prime mover. Forward movement of the machine feeds the cable 49 over the roller 5| and through the fixed sleeve 9, and, at

the same time, as one end of the drive wire 14 is securely attached to the pole 59, said wire will be payed out from the drive wire cup 73, past the snubber stubs I9 and over the sheave plate 34 effecting rotation of sleeve 26 and drum 3| as a unit. At the same time, as the lashing wire 44 is likewise secured at one end, forward movement of the device causes lashing wire to be payed out of the lashing wire cup as the lashing arm 30, carried by the collar 29, rotates about the messenger strand [9 and cable 49. This action places the lashing wire 44 spirally around the strand [9 and the cable 49 with tension, resulting from the snubbing action of the studs 4'1, and draws the cable 49 close to the strand l9.

When the end of the span is reached, the lashing wire 44 is temporarily clamped to the cable 49 and the strand [9, and adequate lashing wire is pulled out of the machine to complete the lashing of the span and the wire is then cut. The strap 39 and the lashing wire cup are then removed from the machine, the driving wire 14 is released from the pole and removed from the sheave plate 34; the slot 27 in the lashing sleeve 26 and the slot 32 in the drum 3| are rotated to coincide with the slot ID in the fixed sleeve 9. The guard 53 is then raised and the machine is lifted clear of the strand l9 and the cable49. The lashing is completed by continuing the lashing by hand until the near pole is reached, where the free end of the lashing wire 44 is made fast to either the pole or to the messenger support.

In many instances, it may be desired, or necessary, to unlash cable already secured to a strand. As may be seen in Fig. 2, the cup 35 and the strap 39 are not employed during unlashing. The machine is placed over the cable and strand as above described, after the end of the lashing wire has been released from the near support and unwound for a short distance. The free end of the lashing wire is fed through the guide eye 48, past one or more of the studs 41 as required, to apply adequate tension, through the grommet 46 of the lashing arm 30 to an eye 89 in the drum 3|, where it is made secure. The drive wire 14 is threaded as previously described, but should be clockwise around the sheave plate 34, if the lashing to be removed is counterclockwise or vice versa; and instead of being made fast to the pole 59, as in lashing, the drive wire 14 is now passed to the ground where tension can be applied in a forward direction to cause the machine to move backward along the strand [9 and the cable 49, unlashing the cable 49 from the strand l9 and lowering said cable to the ground over the roller 51. For unlashing, the braking wedge 56 must be placed in hole 62, to permit backward movement of the machine. The action of unlashing is caused by the rotation of the sheave 34 wrapping lashing wire 44 around'the drum 3|, and this causes the lashing arm 30 to rotate free of the drum 3!, to unlash the cable 49 and to feed the recovered lashing wire 44 to the drum 3|, and tension on the lashing wire 44 causes the machine to be drawn backward along the strand 19. When the end of the span is reached, the wire 44 is unwrapped from the drum 3| and the machine is removed from the strand I9 and cable 49, in the reverse of the manner in which it was placed in position.

For the purpose of respooling the driving wire.

'54 after the completion of one span and to pre pare for the next one, and to respool' lashing wire 44 removed from the cable, thus freeing the drum 3i for removal of the machine'from the strand 9, a hand operated separable reel 8l,"having an inner flange 84 and an outer flange 85, provided to rotate on a spindle 92 which is supported by plate I. The reel 8i is rotated by a knob 83 and the inner flange 84 is retained on the spindle 82, while the outer flange 85 is removable therefrom, thus permitting the wire spooled on the reel 8! to be removed therefrom as a coiled bundle for use in either the lashing wire cup, the driving wire cup, or for storage.

While there has been described herein one specific embodiment of the invention, in its preferred form, it is obvious that modifications and changes can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, directional rotation of the drum 3i and the lashing arm secured thereto can be effected in either clockwise or counterclockwise rotation during the lashing stage. The foregoing description reveals the usual conventional application of the machine to lashing and unlashing cables in the commercial type of aerial cable construction. The forms of braking and tensioning mechanisms shown herein have been chosen for simplicity, however, it is understood that other forms of mechanisms producing the same results may be utilized. However, it is to be understood that special applications and uses of the machine are such that the machine can be held in fixed position and wires or cables pulled through it at the same time as driving wire 14 is pulled over curved sheave plate 34 thus effecting the lashing together of the wires and cables drawn through the machine.

I claim:

1. A device for lashing cable to and unlashing cable from a messenger strand comprising a framework for riding along a strand, a drum rotatably mounted thereon, a lashing mechanism for rotating said drum comprising a circular member fixed to said drum and rotatably drivable relative to said framework, a container of lashing wire on said drum, a guide for said lashin Wire laterally positioned to and mounted on said drum, means for selectively securing said guide to said drum whereby during lashing the guide and drum are mutually rotated and lashing wire is payed out of said container about said cable and messenger strand, said last mentioned means including means for releasing said guide from rotation with said drum whereby said guide is rotatably free of said drum and under the stress of said lashing wire during an unlashing operation by which said lashing wire is unwound from said cable and messenger strand and wound upon said drum.

2. A device for lashing cable to and unlashing cable from a messenger strand comprising a framework for riding along a strand, a drum roattests tata'biy mounted thereon, a lashing mechanism for rotating said drum comprising a oireular member fixed to said drum and rotatably drivabl relative to said framework, a container of lashing wire on said drum, a guide for said lashmg wire laterally positioned to and mounted on said drum, means for selectivel securing said guide to said drum whereby during lashing the guide and drum are mutually rotated and lashing wire'is payed out or said container about said cable and messenger strand, said last mentioned means including means for releasing said guide from rotation with said drum whereby said guide is rotatably free of said drum and unqer the stress of said lashing wireduring an unlasnirig operation by which said lashing Wire is unwound from said cable and messenger strand and wound upon said drum, and releasable braking means to permit movement of the framework along the strand in only one direction during lashing.

3. Aclevice for lashing cable to and unlashing cable from a messenger strand comprising a framework for riding along' a strand, a drum rotatably' mounted thereon, a lashing mechanism for rotating said drum comprising a circular member fixed to said drum and rotatably dr1va= ble relative to said framework, a container of lashing wire on said drum, a guide for said lash= ing wire laterally positioned to and mounted on said drum, for selectively securing said guide to said drum whereby during lashing the guide and drum are mutually rotated and lashing wire is payed out of said container about said cable and messenger strand, said last mentioned means including means for releasing said guide from rotation with said drum whereby said guide is rotatably free of said drum and under the stress of said lashing wiredu'ring an unlasuing operation by which said lashing wire is unwound from said cable and messenger strand and wound upon said drum, and releasable braking means to permit rotation of the guide in only one direction during lashing.

4 A device for lashing cable to and unlashing cable from a messenger strand comprising a framework for riding along a strand, a drum rotatably mounted thereon, a lashing mechanism for rotatin said drum comprising a circular member fixed to said drum and rotatably drivable relative to said framework, a container of lashing wire on said drum, a guide for said lashing w relaterally positioned to and mounted on said drum, means for selectively securing said guide to said drum whereby during lashing the guide and drum are mutually rotated and lashing' wire is payed out of said container about said catie and messenger strand, said last mentioned means including means for releasing said sn de from rotation with said diiifn whereby said giiid is rotatably free of said and under the stress of said lashing w re during an unlashihg o era= tion bi which said lashing wire is unwound from said Gable and messenger strand and wound said drum, and a first releasable braking means to permit movement of the framework a one the strand only one diifctio 'n during lashing, and a second releasa e rak ng means to hermit rotation of the guide in only one direction during issuing. V

5, A deviee f6r lashin cable to, and un asiiing table from. a messenger strand, comp ising a framework, a first re1easab1e one-way braking means carried by the framework ror permitting the movement of the de'vice along the strand only on'e direetion when lashing, and allowing the de'vic to move in either direction when u'fi= lashing; a longitudinally slotted stationary sleeve fixed to said framework, a longitudinally slotted rotatable sleev coaxial with said stationary sleeve, the rotatable sleeve having an arm secured thereto, a) drum coaxial with the sleeves, the drum and the arm being separately rotatable, releasable means to lock the driini and the aim together for mutual rotatieathe looking meaiis operating during 1ashing and being released dllf ing smashing, a laterally positioned lashing wire cup carried by the devise and mutually rotatable with the arm, lashing wire in the cup, means for effecting rotational movement of the drum, and a second reieasame one-wa brake means carried y the framework for permitting the drum to rotate in only one direction during lashing, when released permitting the drum to rotate in either direction during unlashin'g, whereby during lashing, the arm and the cup are mutually rotated and lashing wire is payed out from the cup and guided by the arm and spirally wound about the cable and the strand and, during unlashing', the drum is rotated and the lashing wire is wound upon it and the arm rotates independently of the drum and guides the wire on to the drum.

LELAND H. STANFORD;

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